


Heavy Weighs the Crown

by Pannathian



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Game)
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-30
Updated: 2018-05-30
Packaged: 2019-05-15 21:49:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14798594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pannathian/pseuds/Pannathian
Summary: Hornet will not let the opportunity to rebuild pass her by, so if that means she must march down into the Abyss herself and drag Ghost out herself, she will.(Look, this was written for friends but I might as well throw it here. I don't care about ur canon I live my happiest life)





	Heavy Weighs the Crown

In the end, Ghost had to be King. Whether they had any inkling of wanting to or not, was irrelevant to Hornet.

“You will not be like the last.” She had hissed when she climbed down into the Abyss, and into their birthplace with a repaired Vessel for them. At first, Ghost did not budge, having satisfied their duties and ready to merge back into the Void. Hornet, however, was not a bug to be trifled with, and with cruel accusation, she claimed Ghost had not done enough.

“You have done the bare minimum. So what, the plague is gone, within you or your voidheart, I do not know or care to. But your family’s failures were borne of doing the minimum. Borne of negligence and misguidance. So you aim to repeat it? True, you may lack the thought of Hollow, but that is simply foolishness.” 

Ghost knew the truth behind it. Not that they had to return to act as King, but they knew that Hornet was believed she would have to take their place. A role she certainly knew was not meant for her-- or perhaps one she feared. No matter, Ghost found themselves dragged back into physical form, and marched back up into the Capital. In some way, Ghost knew she wanted something no one could give her, not even them. There would be no returning the kingdom of Hallownest to its original state, but perhaps she felt a similar drive to theirs? A want- no, a need, to fulfill whatever royal position or role she was meant to have. Strange, though, that she would refuse the highest position offered, especially with no competition.

“I am not the one with the brand. I hold no inheritance.” Was her only explanation when Ghost got around to inquiring. Which, while true, would be irrelevant once Ghost had vanished back into the Void. Would they not take the brand, and therefore the mark with them? A question to be sure, but now they would never know.

\--

Repairing the Capital proved… Interesting. Neither of the royal siblings knew how to construct things like buildings. It pushed Hornet to humble herself, and go to bugs she and Ghost knew of for help. Over some time, they managed to put together a small repair team (who knew there was a bug working to repair all the signs Ghost had smashed on a whim during their travels? It  _ almost _ made them guilty. Almost). As they worked through the city rooms and halls, bugs they had never met crawled from the darkness to take refuge under the protection of Hornet and Ghost. After a while, Hornet confessed to Ghost that the Hollow Knight, or just ‘Hollow’ to her, had hidden away in the Queen’s Gardens out of shame. She was not able to retrieve him.

‘He lives?’ Ghost asked, looking up in a bit of relief from the blueprints laid out on the table in front of them. 

“Indeed. I had believed you both to perish, or be consumed by the Light, and then Her by the Void. But… I remembered… The entity you would leave when your body was too injured to continue. I thought, perhaps, you both might still be retrievable. I found you, yes, in the Abyss… But it took time to find Hollow. He did not want to be found.” She didn’t look to Ghost.

‘Why?’

“Humiliation, I assume. I laughed at first; I didn’t believe him. But his failing was his self-made heart, so I believe it must be true. He must be grief-stricken at his failure to do as you did.”

Ghost pondered this quietly, fascinated by their sibling. Self-made heart? What constituted such a thing? Sure, they were  _ made _ to feel nothing, but Ghost knew they had felt things before, even if they could not name or recognize them. Feelings had never interested them, though. They were more focused in the facts- the solid truths they could see before them and in the minds of others. 

“We must convince him to return.”

This alarmed Ghost, making them squint at their sibling in more confusion.

‘Why?’

“Ugh, must you act so ignorant? We are stronger when we work together, are we not? Did it not take all three of us to defeat Her? It is a foolish mistake to let Hollow cower away when he could be here, helping us.”

If Ghost had a mouth, they would have frowned. Everything was a ‘foolish mistake’ to Hornet. It was almost infuriating, especially when they knew arguing would be pointless. She was so set on her own ideals and plans, she never listened to what Ghost thought.

Ironic.

‘Very well. Let me know how that goes.’

This was not the answer she wanted, and Ghost did not have to look back up from their blueprints to know. They could feel the stifled anger bleeding out around their feet.

“ _ You _ will go to him.”

‘Why me? I don’t understand his guilt or worry. If he wants to feel sorry for himself, so be it. I cannot convince him of something I don’t believe myself.’

Hornet shook with anger, and with a sharp inhale, she stormed out of the room, nearly ripping the curtain out of the doorway in the process. Ghost watched after her in quiet measurement, and felt their fingers twitch against the parchment in their hand.

\--

“Where are you going?” 

‘I believe you sent me on a rescue mission.’

Hornet snorted, looking between the bugs she had been discussing with about repairing the city’s sewer system and them. “Very well. Good luck.”

Ghost pretended not to hear the salt in her voice, and quickly took off towards the Gardens. It was not a long journey, but Ghost also knew they had very poor perception of time. Once they had softly landed on the polished pathways of the Gardens, they tried to feel for the familiarity they knew in Hornet, hoping something similar lurked below them. There seemed to be several spots where the void pumped up from the Abyss below, souring the ground and life around it. These waterfalls of void annoyed Ghost, as it made their already tedious job feel more tedious. Hopefully, Hollow was not stowed away in some cocoon of vines.

After what felt like ages, they had eliminated all the possible sources of kin except one, and it made Ghost stiffen up when they realized where it was. They could not feel very much, but they knew the emotion that stirred in their core when they looked upon the White Lady’s shelter was a dark, distant one. Reluctantly, they made their way inside.

Soft voices echoed in the winding pathway into the buildings core, and Ghost hesitated once they reached the entrance to her chamber. Slowly, they stepped into the bright room, eyes locking onto the tall vessel that seemed to have lifted his head from the Lady’s lap.

Fear.

It rattled around in Ghost’s head, and made them uncomfortable. They did not like knowing how Hollow felt, especially when it was so saturated with all the complicated messiness of guilt and fear.

“Ah… What an unexpected surprise.” The Lady said softly.

“Sibling.. You are…”

‘Have you not left this room in that long? Have you submitted yourself to a life like hers- a prisoner of yourself?’ Ghost was surprised by the hostility in their words, not allowing Hollow to say what they already knew he thought.

“I… Believed you gone. Should I have… Come for y-?”

‘Do not be ridiculous. Hornet came for me. And now we come for you. You will return to the Capital with me.’

This time, Hollow’s defensiveness caught Ghost off-guard, and Ghost quickly remembered just how small and underdeveloped they were compared to their siblings. Hollow rose to his feet, eyes narrowed and fingers flexing warningly.

“I am going nowhere. How dare you come in here, with such hate in your soul, in front of-”

“Hollow, my little one, be still. Do not hold it against them.” The Lady soothed gently, surprising Ghost with how it worked. “Ghost, please understand. Your big sibling has chosen to stay here with me. Can you not honor that?”

Ghost’s chest fluttered again, in a sour way.

‘I am the elder sibling, if your memory has decayed too much to remember. I make this request on behalf of Hornet. If you will not come with me, she will likely come here herself. I imagine she will be less inclined to discuss matters than I.’ They spat, defiantly staring up at Hollow towering over them.

“You may be older, but you know so little. Even Hornet is not so hostile. I am not going anywhere with you, especially now. What could you possibly need with me? Clearly, you believe yourself much greater than I and others. I can give you nothing that you do not already think you own.” Hollow sunk back at the Lady’s feet, settling again on her lap.

Ghost felt sick. Horribly sick, for some unknown reason. Their vision blurred and they could feel their body bubble and boil with anger and… and… something else. Something equally unpleasant. They tried to answer, to formulate any kind of thought, but the rage they suddenly felt in seeing Hollow rest his head on the Lady’s lap wrought Ghost with so much anguish that they simply turned heel and dashed out. They didn’t even register the horrified emotion coming from Hollow, as they were unaware of the ominous orange glow they had flashed at their sibling.

Ghost ran away from the terrible building and their terrible ‘family’ until the chittering and crackling of thousands of insects rattled their head. They stopped, finally, in Deepnest, shuddering with effort. It was as if their body was fighting against them, threatening to fall apart in the same way it did when their Shade evacuated it in battle. 

A voice- or perhaps simply an idea that was not their own- formed in their mind. It was achingly pleasant and smooth, and though they could not make out what it said initially, they could feel it’s intent.

_ Submit _ , it demanded.

Ghost understood, suddenly, what Hornet had meant by a ‘self-made heart’, and then how Hollow could have failed his role. The emotions that wracked them made their mind weak to the Light that now lingered in their inner conscience. After many months, Ghost had mistakenly assumed that the Void had done its job in consuming the Light. They must have still been connected to Her, or maybe she latched onto them when Hornet pulled them back into the mortal world. Nevertheless, Ghost was filled with a newfound fear, feet picking back up again as they ran with more fervor. They couldn’t run away from Her or their ingrown emotions, but they felt comforted by the air whisking past them.

\--

Hornet found Ghost huddled in a small alcove of webbing in a long unused tunnel. She stood in front of them, peering down at their tiny figure.

“I spoke to Hollow. When you did not return, I grew concerned.”

Ghost did not answer.

“He said you lack tact. You even implied I would raise my nail to him.”

Ghost still did not answer.

“What is it that ails you- speak or I will definitely raise my nail to you.”

Ghost looked up at her, empty eyes wide with a million words and things they could not understand or verbalize. She sighed heavily, kneeling and squeezing herself into the small space with her small sibling. 

“Hollow regrets what he said to you. He knows you are not the same as him. I should not have asked you to go. You were right, you can’t-”

‘I did. I do.’ Ghost interrupted, ‘I do feel it. I do feel his fear. I feel envious.’

Hornet was silent with shock.

‘I am envious of how he no longer has any responsibility. I hear Her. She is not gone. In bringing me back, She has been allowed to survive in the depths on my mind. I am envious he no longer must hold the burden. So, now, I understand his fear and shame.’ They solemnly admitted, tugging their cloak closer to their body.

“He did also say you had a horrible look in your eyes.” Was all she offered before allowing them both to sit in silence for some time. When she spoke again, it was with a newfound compassion that Ghost had never heard before. “I meant it when I said we are stronger together. Hollow was doomed to fail because he was attempting to hold Her all on his own. Granted, the Dreamers played a part in keeping him contained, but they did not face Her directly.”

Ghost angled their head to her, searching for an expression they didn’t find.

“You aren’t alone now. Neither is he. We have each other, and that’s something the Wyrm did not understand. No god or deity could understand the value of numbers- the power in bonds,” she paused, and then gave Ghost a sly look, “perhaps that is why they do not last so long.”

The sickness in Ghost’s soul ebbed, and they were relieved. They didn’t entirely believe that the burden was shared, but they did believe that they were not expected to do it perfectly. 

“You should also apologize to Hollow for your words. He has agreed to return to the Capital and play a role in court. On one condition.”

‘What’s that?’

“The White Lady must also come with him.”


End file.
